Pin It OrganicsToYou...IHeartYou!

OK, I've only received my first box so far, but I'm loving my OrganicsToYou! Wow! A big box filled with organic, and mostly local, vegetables and fruits is just so exciting to me. I feel like this is really going to force me to use fresh produce in ALL of my cooking. C'mon lazy bones, let's do this!!!
So I went a little buck wild and used a bunch of the ingredients in one meal last night. This soup was cozy, filling, delicious, and easy. On a rare snowy night here in Oregon, what else can you ask for?
P.S. - I'll highlight in red what was from THE BOX!


IHeartOrganicsToYou Hearty Chickenless Soup

2 turnips, peeled and cubed
1 onion, peeled and cubed
3 cloves garlic, sliced
1 leek, white part only, chopped (would have used a couple more if it had been in there)
3 potatoes, peeled and cubed
8 small, cute carrots, chopped into rounds
1 beet, peeled and cubed (this was a great addition, so if you have more beets, I would add a beet or two)
1 1/2 boxes of Imagine No-Chicken Broth
Nutritional Yeast to taste
4 squirts of Bragg's Aminos
2 squirts of Lemon Juice
Paprika to taste
Garlic Salt to taste
Pepper to taste
Pat of Earth Balance
Olive OilS

Sautee onions, leeks and garlic in Earth Balance and Olive oil until translucent. Then add the rest of the dry ingredients. Sautee for a bit. Add Broth, bring to a boil. Cover and simmer for about 15 minutes, or until all is cooked but firm.

Pin It Well, looks like I haven't posted much for the month of December. My excuses include the fact that I didn't have internet for much of the month, and that Baby V was teething and had a cold and has decided he can go whole days without a nap at not even 1 year old.

But to recap...baking fever came over me this month! From what I hear, this condition is normal around the holidays. The only cure: sugary, fatty delicacies. The cool thing is, instead of dialing up the internet to see what the ol' gal has to offer, I found recipes on backs of boxes and in newspapers and magazines... and veganized them to death! Being limited to less than infinity was fun and strangely liberating!

So here is one particularly successful one - Chocolate Biscotti from Parade Magazine, which was inserted into The Oregonian. Here is my suggestion though -- for Biscotti you have to bake the dough twice. However, I of course did not have the willpower to resist tasting after the first baking and it was SOOO delicious at that point. So, while it was great and crunchy as biscotti, I would suggest just baking the dough as cookies. I don't even usually like chocolate cookies and I was in heaven.

My final note before the New Year is that I spent an obscene amount of money at the grocery store the past two times I went, due to holidays and gift cards and just loading up the cart. I'd like to try this challenge and see how it goes. I've done something similar before, and it's actually pretty fun -- you have to get creative! My loving husband got me Organics To You for my birthday this week, so I will have fresh veggies, but I vow to do little to no shopping besides that! I think I might be needing some more olive oil and earth balance, though. But no shopping besides that! Probably.

Chocolate Biscotti (Or better yet...Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies)

(Instructions note: "In a pretty tin, these twice-baked cookies keep their crunch for over a week")

2 cups flour
1/2 cup cocoa powder, unsweetened (I used the dark chocolate variety)
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
6 tbsp. (3 oz) earth balance, softened
1 cup sugar
1 cup unsweetened apple sauce
3/4 cup chocolate chips (I used semi-sweet)

1- Sift together dry ingredients. Beat earth balance and sugar together until very smooth, then mix in applesauce well. Mix in dry ingredients until blended. Fold in chips.
2- Divide dough; put pieces on opposite sides of a parchment-lined baking sheet. Shape each into a 12-inch-long, 1/2-inch thick log. Bake at 350 F for 25 minutes; cool 20 minutes.
3- Slice into 1/2-inch thick cookies. Stand them up on baking sheet; bake for 15 minutes. Cool to room temperature.
4- Devour!

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Well well, we had quite the traditional Thanksgiving day over here...if Asian food is your traditional Thanksgiving!!! And I bet it's NOT! I guess if you're not eating turkey, nor seeing your family, and you and your spouse are lazy and busy with an infant, it makes sense that we ended eating a few Asian appetizers for the Day Upon Which We Give Thanks.

So, I made a couple of Korean dishes that I love, and one very interesting take on a traditional Thanksgiving appetizer, courtesy of Veganomicon {a book I don't (but need) to have!}


This spinach salad was really good. The only alterations I made is that I salted the boiling water, and I left the spinach in a tad longer than indication. Also I toasted the sesame seeds before using. This is one of my favorite Korean appetizers and I was so happy to make it myself!

This cucumber salad is so refreshing and delicious. Alterations is that I doubled the recipe, I cut the cucumbers into half moons by cutting it lengthwise and scooping out the seeds and then chopping each half. I didn't use cilantro because I despise the stuff in general. I marinated in the fridge for a while before adding sesame seeds. And I added a dash of sesame oil to taste.

The piece de resistance was truly the panko stuffed mushrooms. I've had some panko breadcrumbs in my cupboard for a while now so it was a perfect way to use them. I didn't use much daikon but it didn't matter -- this was really a treat! I probably could have cooked the mushrooms a bit longer but I thought the stuffing was getting dried out/burnt. If I was less distracted I would have tested to make sure. Oh, and I used red pepper flakes instead of white pepper and it was fine, with a nice tiny kick.

Next year we'll do the usual. Having a baby and no family for thousands of miles has sure shook things up a bit. But next year Baby V will be more aware, and I like the traditions because they make me feel all warm and fuzzy inside -- turkey corpse be damned.